Refrigerating apparatus



Au 12, 1930,; R. FEHR 1,772,991

REFR IGERATING APPARATUS F-iled Dec. 2, 19 26 Patented Aug. 12, 1930 NITED STATES PATENT OFFICZE JOHN BAIJPH FEHR, DAYTON, OHIO, AS SIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO ERIGIDAIBE CORPORATION, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE vREFRIGEBATING' APPARATUS Application filed December 2, 1926. Serial No. 152,264.

This invention relates to cooling units for mechanical refrigerators, and moreparticularly to cooling units which are adapted to be installed in refrigerating cabinets of the household type. However, it-is to be understood that the present invention may be adapted for larger refrigerating cabinets of the commercial type.

The present invention includes among its objects the provision of a cooling unit of simple and economical construction, which will quickly congeal or freeze substances which are placed within a'freezing compartment provided by the unit, and which will effectively 1 cool the food compartment of the cabinet.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a front view of a refrigerator cabinet with the doors open in order to show the food compartment and a cooling unit within a cooling compartment;

Fig. 2 is a view on a larger scale than Fig. 1, showing the front view of the cooling unlt which is suspended within the cooling compartment of,a cabinet, the walls of which are shown in vertical section; and

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the cooling unit drawn to the same scale as Fig. 2.

Referringto the drawings, designates a refrigerator cabinet which provides an i.- shap'ed food compartment 21 separated from a cooling compartment 22 by a horizontal partition 23v and a vertical partition 24. The partition 24 is provided with a flue 25, admitting relatively warm air from the food compartment 21 to the cooling compartment 22; and the partition 23 is provided with a flue 26, admitting cooled air from the compartment 22 to the compartment 21. The partition 23 supports a bafiie 27 which prevents moisture, dripping from the cooling unit above, from entering the flue 26. The baflie 27 directs such moisture upon the surface of the partition 23, and this moisture is conducted away through a rain pipe 28.

The cooling unit located within the"cool ing' compartment 22, includes a boiler or header 30 attached to the top wall of the cabinet by bracket members 31 and 32. Condensed refrigerant is conducted to the header 30 from a compressor and condenser (not shown) through a pipe 33 and a fitting 34. Refrigerant is admitted from the fitting 34, as needed, by a float-controlled valve (not shown), of suitable construction, located within the header 30. Expanded refrigerant is conducted back to the compressor through a fitting 35 and a-pipe 36. The refrigerating compressor and condenser with which the pipes 33 and 36 are connected, may be located outside of the cabinet, if desired, or may be laced within a machine compartment located elow the food compartment 21, said compartment having a removable front wall 37 provided with louvers 38. The cooling unit includes a plurality of opposed looped-conduits 40, of metal of good thermal conductivity, arranged in preferably two horizontal rows on either side of a quickfreezing space 41 below the header 30. Each loop has a leg 42 located adjacent the space 41 to provide a side wall portion cooperating with the header to provide or enclose the space or zone 41, and a leg 43 which is more remote from the freezing space and is so located as to be substantially entirely subjected to air currents circulating through the flues 25 and 26. The legs or branches 42 and 43 together with their independent lower connecting portions provide groups of airs of oppositely disposed ducts which can be bent readily so as to align the opposed duets with the ice tray sleeves 44 whereby all of the inner legs 42 can be brought into intimate thermal contact with the sleeves.

The legs 43 are bent away from the planes of the legs 42, as viewed in Fig. 3, so that the air, which descends around the cooling unit may freely contact with the portions of the legs 42 which are more remote from the freezing space. This arrangement of the legs of the loops permits staggering of the rows of holes in the header for receiving the ends of the loops. Thus the connections of the loop ends with the header may be close y 7 wall of the header.

The quick-freezing space may be occupied by one or more metal shelves or sleeves 44 for receiving metal trays 45 containing substances to be congealed or frozen, such as water tobe frozen into me cubes. Preferably, after the connections ofthe loops with the header have been made, the side walls 10 of the sleeves 44 are attached and thermally connected with the legs 42 by brazing, soldering, or the like. The present arrangement of loops provides for bending them away from the vertical plane of the header so as to adapt them to fit snugly agalnst the side walls of the sleeves.

In operation, the space 41 will be colder than other portions of the cooling chamber 22, since this space is protected by the header and ducts 42 from the air which circulates adjacent the cooling unit. Also, since the freezing zone, provided by branches 42, is nested with the, air cooling zone, provided by branches 43, the air passing over the freezing zone will be precooled by the air cooling zone and therefore the branches 43 provide what may be termed a shield for the freezing zone.- The ducts 42 will remain constantl rosted while the ducts 43 may be de-froste to some extent during the idle periodsof the refrigcrating machine, and for the purpose of increasing the cooling eflect of the ducts 43, these ducts or both of the ducts of the loops 40 may be provided with vertical fins lying in the planes of the loops. The frost which collects to a greater degree upon the ducts 42 than the ducts 43 will contribute to maintaining the temperature of the space 41 below that of the environment, of the cooling 'unit. Thus the cooling unit will operate effectively to cool the food chamber 21 and quickly to freeze or congeal substances placed within the space 41.

, The arrangement herein shown in addition 45 to providing an inexpensive, easily manufactured, cooling unit, and a cooling unit which provides for quickly freezing and con gealing substances, provides an eflicient evap orator in that the refrigerant readily circu- 0 lates within the loops. The ducts or branches 42 and 43 are arranged thermally nonsymmetrical in that branches 43 are exposed to warmer circulating air than the branches 42. Because of this arrangement,

the volatile liquid refrigerant will boil more violently in branches 43 and therefore the column of refrigerant in branches 43 will have a different apparent density than the column of refrigerant in branches 42. This, difference in apparent density of the columns of refrigerant will cause to be set up a prevalent flow of refrigerant downwardly through ganches 42 and upwardly through branches While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed, constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other extending ducts disposed opposite the"first group and cooperating with said first group to provide a freezing zone therebetween, 1ndividual connecting portions at the lower ends of one of said groups of ducts for connecting the ducts of said group'in pairs, certain ducts of the pairs extending outwardly beyond the freezing zone, and means for deliveringliquid refrigerant to said ducts and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefrom.

2. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising, a group of downwardly extending ducts, another group of downwardly extending ducts disposed opposite the first group and cooperating with said first group to provide a freezing zone therebetween, and individual connecting portions at the lower ends of one of said groups of ducts for connecting the ducts ofsaid group in pairs, individual connecting portions at the lower ends of the other of said groups of ducts for connecting the ducts of said other group in pairs, certain ducts of'the pairs extending outwardly of one side of the freezing zone, and certain ducts extending outwardly of the op osite side of the freezing zone, and means or delivering liquid refrigerant to said ducts and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefrom.

3. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising, a header, a plurality of opposed duct- 100 s connected in parallel circuit relation with the header and independentlyof one another, said 100 s each having a plurality of branches, certain branches of said opposed loops cooperating to provide a freezing zone between the opposed loops, and certain branches of the same loops lying outwardly of the freezing zone, and means for delivering liquid refrigerant to said loops and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefrom.

4. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising, a header, a plurality of opposed duct loops connected in parallel cir-. cuit relation with the header and independ-.

cooling unit comprising a header adapted to contain a quantity'of liquid refrigerant, duct means arranged 1n groups and communicating with the header, one group being disposed on one side of the header, another of the groups being disposed on the opposite side of the header, the duct means of one group comprising loops each having its ends connected with the header, certain branches of the loops of the last mentioned group being disposed closer to the first group than other branches of said last group, and means for delivering liquid refrigerant to said header and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefrom.

6. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators adapted to be placed in the path of cooling medium to be cooled thereby, said cooling unit comprising a header adapted to contain a quantity of liquid refrigerant, a plurality of duct loops each having its ends connected with the header, said loops. being arranged in groups with one group disposed on one side of the header and another on the opposite side of the header, the loops of the groups being arranged to provide rows of inner branch portions enclosed by rows of outer branch portions, and means for delivering liquid refrigerant to said header and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefrom.

7. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising a header, a plurality of individual duct loops connected with the header in parallel circuit relation, certain of said loops each having downwardly extending leg arranged at one side and relatively near the vertical axis of the header and a leg arranged on the same side of the header but relatively more remote from said axis, andmeans for delivering liquid refrigerant to the header and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefrom.

8. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising, a header, a plurality of therefrom.

er, one branch of a loop being arranged ther- .mally non-symmetrical to the opposed branch of said loop, and means for delivering liquid refrigerant to the header and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefrom.

10. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising, a header, a plurality of individual duct loopsfor cooling a circulating medium flowing thereover, said loops each including a plurality of branches, each branch of a loop havmgan end con nected with the header and the opposite ends connected for the free flow of refrigerant from one branch to another, both branches of a loop being disposed on one side of the header, one branch of a loop being arranged for causing the refrigerant therein to have a different apparent density than the opposed branch of the said loop, and means for delivering liquid refrigerant to the header and for conveying gaseous refrigerant therefroma 11. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising, a header, a plurality of individual duct loopsfor cooling :1 circulating medium flowing thereover, said loops each including a plurality of branches, each branch of a loop having an end connected with the header and the opposite ends connected for the free flow of refrigerant from one branch to another, both branches of a .loop being disposed on one side of the header,

one branch of a loop being arranged for causing the refrigerant therein to be subjected to a different temperature than the refrigerant in the opposed branch of said loop, and means .for delivering liquid refrigerant to the header and forv conveying gaseous refrigerant In testimony whereof I hereto afiix my signature.

JOHN RALPH FEHR.

individual duct loops connected with the header in parallel circuit relation, certain of said loops being disposed on one'side of the header andcertain of said loops being disposed on the opposite side of the header,said loops each including a leg arranged relatively near the vertical axis of the header and a leg arranged relatively more remote from said axis, and means for delivering liquid refrigerant to the header and for conveymggaseous refrigerant therefrom. 9. A cooling unit for mechanical refrigerators comprising, a header, a plurality of individual duct loops for cooling a circulating medium flowingthereover, said loops each including a plurality of branches, each branch of a loop having an end connected with the header and the opposite ends connected for the free flow of refrigerant from one branch to another, both branches of a.

loop being disposed on one'side of the head- 

